Bavaria’s police officers used stun guns in 66 operations this year up to the end of November. The use of the officially “distance electropulse devices (DEIG)” weapons was only threatened in 51 cases, as announced by the Bavarian Ministry of the Interior in Munich. In 14 cases, the devices, which are commonly known under the manufacturer’s name as so-called tasers, were used in distance mode and in one case in contact mode.
This means that the devices were used much more frequently this year than in the previous year: in 2021 the Ministry of the Interior still registered 51 cases. Among them were 33 threats, 17 distance and one contact mode.
When the officers used their stun guns, they fired two needle-shaped projectiles into their opponent’s body. These are usually connected to the weapon with insulated wires, resulting in a current flow that temporarily paralyzes the person concerned.
“During the missions, there were superficial skin injuries caused by the penetration of the arrowheads and in one case superficial abrasions,” said the Ministry of the Interior. “There were neither cases in which investigations into illegal use of the DEIG were conducted, nor convictions.” In a case from Augsburg, in which the officers had used their firearm in addition to the taser, the public prosecutor’s office checked the lawful use of the service weapon. With the result that the operation was in order and the procedure was discontinued.
How often the Bavarian police officers shot at people or in the air this year has not yet been evaluated. How many people were injured and possibly killed as a result in 2022 will only be available from mid-March 2023 with the new police crime statistics.